2.) The Mets have scored only two runs after the 6th inning total in the past four games, spanning 12 innings.
3.) The bullpen and defense will continue to be the death of this team. Add to that the base-running and mental errors over the past week, and this team is in even more trouble.
4.) Lucas Duda and Daniel Murphy are now both rated as worse than replacement level players by Fangraphs.
5.) 59 errors- second most in the NL, and by far the worst UZR rating in the NL.
6.) The record the Mets have outside of R.A. Dickey's starts is 27-33.
7.) Kirk Nieuwenhuis, even with his recent struggles, has the 6th highest BABIP in baseball--meaning he has gotten very lucky this year. He has the 5th highest strikeout rate in baseball. The two combined do not bode well for the rest of his season.
8.) Daniel Murphy still does not have a home run and is the 18th worst slugging hitter in all of baseball.
9.) The Mets as a team have the third highest hitting BABIP in the NL (read: the Mets have gotten lucky with their hitting so far this year and that will even out over the course of a season).
10.) The Mets are 0-5 against the Cubs and the Astros. Had they gone just 3-2 in those games, they would be 1.5 games out of first place and in sole possession of the wildcard. While crushing late-inning one-run losses to the Yankees total three missed opportunities, late blown games against the Marlins and defensive comedy contributing to a few more missed chances for this team to move into the NL's elite, it is these five games against the bottom-dwellers of baseball that have made the difference between an average and a contending team.
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The point of this article is not to bash the Mets. Yes, they have been infuriating to watch with their poor defense, mental mistakes on the base paths, and one of the worst bullpens you could imagine, but my point is this: Before we get crazy about trading for a bullpen arm or right-handed bat to make a playoff run, keep in mind that this has been a below average team since the first week of baseball and simply will not be able to overcome its bullpen and defense even with exterior reinforcements.
This team was never meant to contend. 2012 was always a rebuilding year. The relative success has been nice, but this team cannot sacrifice anything that could be of value to the parent club in the near future. The 2012 Mets are not a playoff team and while I would rather they not find progressively more comical ways to lose ball games, this was always the script for this team. Help is on the way and we cannot sacrifice it to make a futile attempt at a playoff run.
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